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Walnut Creek’s Ruth Bancroft is a national authority on drought-resistant gardening. Twice a month, she and her staff share their knowledge with readers.
Q At the Ruth Bancroft Garden’s fall plant sale, I parked in the back and, walking up the drive toward the sale, I passed two plants with lovely flowers. One was a tree with clusters of bright red flowers, the other a bush with large yellow bell-like flowers. Can you tell me what these are?
A The tree is the Australian Flame Tree, Brachychiton acerifolius. The species name “acerifolius” refers to the resemblance of its palmate leaves to those of a maple. This is only a superficial resemblance, however, since this tree is not at all related to the maples.
The common name Flame Tree refers to the showy red flowers, which hang down in clusters of up to a foot in length. Under some climatic conditions, these trees shed all their leaves before bursting into full bloom, so that the many clusters put on a fiery display. At the Ruth Bancroft Garden, however, the leaves do not shed, and the tree flowers a little at a time over the summer and fall months.
The cup-like flowers of B. acerifolius measure about three-quarters of an inch across. There are no petals; the showy red cup is composed of fused sepals which look petal-like.
This tree can reach a height of 60 feet or more. Our specimen at the Ruth Bancroft Garden, however, is nowhere
near this tall after 30 years.
Brachychitons come from Australia, and B. acerifolius is native to Queensland and New South Wales on the eastern side of the continent.
This genus has long been placed in the family Sterculiaceae, which is related to the Hibiscus Family (Malvaceae). Many taxonomists now favor including the Sterculiaceae in an enlarged concept of the Malvaceae.
The plant with the large yellow flowers you’ve asked about is the shrub Tecoma stans ‘Gold Star,’ sometimes called Yellow Bells. Its leaves are divided into leaflets 2 to 3 inches long with serrated edges.
Normally the species becomes a large bush or small tree, up to 25 feet high. ‘Gold Star,’ however, is more compact, seldom exceeding 6 feet.
It is notable for its long blooming period, through the spring, summer and fall months. In cold winters, the plant may show frost damage, but it can be cut back to the base, and it will sprout and bloom again.
The genus Tecoma belongs to the Trumpet Vine Family, Bignoniaceae. Tecoma stans is native to a large area from southern Arizona and Texas south through Central America to South America.
If you have a question for the Ruth Bancroft Garden, email info@ruthbancroftgarden.org.
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